When I first moved to New York, I was terrified. 

I had never lived outside of Michigan, let alone in a city with ten million others. College was a fun and carefree place where messy kitchens were the norm and mismatched appliances expected. But this, this was real life. This was paying-rent-making-a-paycheck real life. 

My food processor arrived on a Saturday. I'd never had one before, so I was eager to use it. I scoured Pinterest for a dinner recipe, finally landing this pesto, burst-cherry tomato pasta dish from Cookie+Kate. Following Kate's straight-forward, thoughtful instructions, I made my first real New York City dinner.

It tasted like home.